1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a stamp dispensing and envelope handling device.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are many stamp dispensers, most of them manually operated. The closest prior art corresponds to a stamp affixer with Babb et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,793,124 issued in 1974 and assigned to Data-link Corporation, doing business in San Diego, Calif. However, it differs from the present invention because a postage stamp is moistened using a simple mechanism, where only a sponge, constantly in contact with water, moistens the gummed side of the stamp. The present invention also discloses a pad assembly for cutting and affixing a stamp on an envelope with a simple structural body that would have less opportunities to be damaged and thereby having no need of the replacement for spare parts. The present invention, also discloses a multipurpose dispensing device that provides a user a more compact device with several features to store, weigh, moisten and affix a postage stamp on an envelope. Babb's patented device requires the squirting of water through perforations 232. These perforations are susceptible to becoming clogged after being used for a given time and the water applied to the stamp is not uniform (dependent, interalia, on how fast the "single" movement is applied by the user). The present invention resolves this problem by making the application of water to the stamp movement applied by the user.